Eagles' RB Thrives in Setup Role

Kenny Gainwell made the most of his opportunities in a win over Washington.

Philadelphia Eagles running back Kenneth Gainwell (14) / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

PHILADELPHIA - It’s tough to get much shine in a running back room when Saquon Barkley is performing reverse hurdles and closing out games like he’s Mariano Rivera.

Maybe that’s why Eagles coach Nick Sirianni took a moment to highlight just how effective backup RB Kenny Gainwell was in Philadelphia’s 26-18 win over Washington on Thursday night.

Barkley’s performance against the Commanders was Sugar Ray Leonard style, a late flurry that made most forget most of the game for the superstar and the Eagles’ offense as a whole was pedestrian.

After three quarters Barkley had 69 rushing yards on 20 carries, a non-descript 3.5 yards per carry against a run defense ranked 28th in the NFL coming into the first-place showdown. 

The fourth quarter for Barkley was Leonard stealing the round with a late flurry, 77 yards on six carries, including touchdowns of 23 and 39 yards led by the excavation machines of Mekhi Becton and Cam Jurgens respectively.

“That’s the beauty of football,” Barkley told the NFL Network after the game. “You can shut it down for 20 carries, but if you’re wrong on two of them, we have a big day.”

Gainwell’s part in it all came at the outset of the fourth quarter where the fourth-year pro actually highlighted that the Washington defense was wilting after the body blows from the first three quarters.

On three consecutive plays, Gainwell took the Eagles from the Commanders' 38-yard line to the 4 with consecutive runs of 14, 13 and seven yards.

Barkley tagged in for three more yards before Jalen Hurts was tush-pushed in from the one, giving the Eagles their first touchdown and lead of the game, 12-10, and one they never relinquished with 12 minutes left.

“I mean, how about [RB] Kenny Gainwell?” Sirianni gushed when asked by Philadelphia Eagles on SI about the running game. “How about how well he played? He came in for Saquon when Saquon needed a break. We were going on the ball because we were having some good tempo.

“We kind of had them on their heels and we just kept going. Kenny played his butt off.”

Every good closer needs a setup man.

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